LYNN — Frederick Douglass Collegiate Academy has graduated its first class and piloted a new program, where students could gain a high school diploma and an associate’s degree simultaneously.

Of the school’s 81 seniors, 76 were part of the collegiate track, and 36 of those walked away with an associate’s degree, with 13 more just one class shy after summer coursework, on June 4.

Unlike a traditional school, Douglass doesn’t just pull from the top of the class; any Lynn eighth-grader who sees college in their future can apply, and Principal Heather Fabiano interviews every incoming freshman and their family about expectations, support, and whether the early-college model is the right fit, she said.

“To be able to get them that head start is going to be super impactful for them,” she said.

The school is located at 195 Market St., just across from North Shore Community College.

Every student at Frederick Douglass Collegiate Academy splits time between the high school and North Shore Community College, starting with three college classes as a freshman and building up to a full course load by senior year. Freshmen and sophomores take college courses alongside Lynn Public Schools requirements. Juniors spend part of the week taking high school-level classes, and other days taking college classes. For seniors, who stay on track and take four college classes each semester, they often leave with more than 50 credits — and for many, a completed degree, all by the time they cross the high school graduation stage.

To make the model work, she and her team essentially reverse-engineered the school day from college and state requirements, stitching the state’s core curriculum, Lynn’s graduation standards, and North Shore’s liberal arts transfer track into a single plan.

“We have literally looked at what the Mass Core requires, or what Lynn has for their competency determination, and we’ve looked at the liberal arts transfer program of study, and said, ‘Where can we do this?’” Fabiano said.

Even with its first graduating class across the stage, Douglass still operates like a work in progress, with staff retooling schedules and supports after each year.

“Every year there’s something we find that we can do a little bit better, and then there are things that we do really well that we can maybe bring to other areas,” Fabiano said.

For the 2025-26 academic year, Frederick Douglass Collegiate Academy enrolled 339 students, including 295 in its collegiate early-college program and a smaller therapeutic cohort serving grades six through 12.

“Even if you don’t get the associate’s degree, you’re still leaving with a significant amount of college credits,” Fabiano said. “We’re getting you that head start.”

Students who did earn enough credits to receive an associate’s degree also took part in the 2026 Commencement Ceremony at North Shore Community College.

“Getting to see them cross the stage at North Shore and Lynn Public Schools was one of the highlights of my career,” Fabiano said.